


Taking the Red Pill

by andamiro (arysthaeniru)



Category: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis, The Matrix (Movies)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-27
Updated: 2014-08-27
Packaged: 2018-02-15 00:07:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2208192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arysthaeniru/pseuds/andamiro
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Yanagi's always had hope in a Chosen One, despite all the facts pointing against why it was false.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Taking the Red Pill

The stench was overpowering, Yanagi mused, as he quickly jumped out from the Fuurinkaazan, into the main areas of pods. It was quite something when the sewer systems where they usually resided smelled better than the vast cavern where humans were stored. Then again, machines couldn’t smell. That was a solely human thing. 

As he manoeuvred through the pods as quickly as he could, he tried to avoid looking at the faces of the dreaming humans inside. But it was difficult to do so. He’d always been curious and knowledge was power, so he could barely tear his eyes away from the people lying there, forever dreaming, forever vulnerable. 

If Sanada had his way, they would have used all of Zion’s power to free all of the humans from their pods. It was possible and Yanagi knew exactly how to cripple the machines where it hurt. But it would be devastating for the resistance, and there would be no way for the newly released humans to fight against the machines. The machines would certainly kill all of the humans if the humans ever escaped without a way to fight back. It was better that the humans remained mostly alive, even if they were being bred like cattle. 

But he had hope. One day, he wouldn’t have to keep doing this. One day, they would find the _One_. He knew that perhaps only he and Sanada believed in the one, from the Rikkai team, but it was statistically possible. And they had gotten close to finding a ‘One’ before. Everyone in Zion knew the story of Echizen Ryoma. He had failed, for some unknown reason, but he had been merely a step from defeating the machines. They just had to find someone better than Echizen.

Honestly, Yanagi wished that Tezuka had been the One. He’d seemed so competent when he’d broken free of the Matrix by himself and had simply needed an escape route from Rikkai, but instead, he’d just proved to be a very good leader in another section of the pods, very much like Sanada. He too searched for the One, now. Yanagi appreciated his faith in that idea. 

There was enough data to dismiss Yanagi’s hopes about the One as a lost cause. He knew that his close friend Inui didn’t believe in the One, not really, and that Niou, Yagyuu, Marui and Jackal were all too cynical and jaded from years of travelling and running. But Yanagi couldn’t help but believe, especially considering Sanada’s vehemence that the One was out there. His passion was enough to displace Yanagi’s own cynicism in this, at least. 

His tracker beeped and Yanagi knew that he was close, He sped up past the pods, silently apologizing to the people stuck in them. They would remain inside the Matrix for a little while longer. He had to hurry and eject #0678 before the Machines came to patrol this area again and he only had a short amount of time to do so. 

#0678 was already thrashing a little, his face contorted in comparison to the other peaceful faces. He was pale, like the humans who had never seen sunlight. He wasn’t one of the original humans, from when the machines had struck thirty years ago. All he’d ever known was the Matrix. Yanagi grimaced at that thought, as he got ready for his cue. Niou would send him a message once Kirihara got done with giving #068 the red-pill. 

Perhaps the Matrix wasn’t so bad for other people. It was happier universe created by the Machines. A simpler world, where you weren’t always running for your life. But it was knowledge that the people in the Matrix would never know (and to Yanagi who wanted to know everything, that was the ultimate disaster). And they were slowly having their life sucked from them to fuel the very things that trapped them. It was an idea that horrified Yanagi in many ways, though it was utterly ingenious. 

Kirihara was taking longer than usual, it had almost been a minute that Yanagi had been waiting, with the equipment. He worried. Had something gone wrong? If #0678 hadn’t taken the red-pill, they would have told him instantly. There was only 3 minutes and 28 seconds until the patrol machine passed by and sensed his presence. He could release the boy in 40 seconds but he needed confirmation, so that Sanada and the crew would be able to collect Yanagi and #0678. 

Waiting nervously, Yanagi’s eyes flickered down to the boy. He was pretty, he supposed. With the pale skin and soft features that were supposedly attractive, he would have been a hit back on Zion. He wondered whether the boy had enjoyed his life in the Matrix with looks like that. Clearly, #0678 had noticed that something was wrong with his life, but Yanagi wondered if he enjoyed it. 

He also secretly, silently wondered to himself, late at night, whether he would have broken free from the Matrix, had he been born to a pod. Would he have been able to notice that something was instantly wrong, if he didn’t know already? Would he have ever broke out? The thing was Yanagi couldn’t accurately predict that, because he did know. He couldn’t ever predict what he’d do if he didn’t know, because he did know. 

There was finally a buzz in his ear from Niou. “Aka-brat confirmed that he took the pill. Eject him out, data-man.”

Yanagi just made an affirmative sound as he flipped the EMP pulses, unhooked the pod with three firm kicks and drained the life fluid from the pod. With that, the boy drew a sharp breath and his eyes opened widely, as he coughed out the fluid and gasped heavily. His first breaths in this new world. 

"Hurry up." said Yanagi, as he pulled out the cords from the sides of #0678 and the boy helped Yanagi with it, looking quite confused. "We have to move fast, before the machines find us."

The dazed look on the face of the boy sharpened instantly, and he nodded, with determination. Not many new people were able to do that, Yanagi was very impressed. Yanagi gripped the young man’s hand and ran towards the nearest sewer, and luckily the man followed with little resistance. 

"But what if we fall?" asked the young man, as he noticed what they were drawing close to. First words. How memorable. 

"You’ll just have to trust us." said Yanagi, before they made the leap of faith down.


End file.
